Protective garment



Jan. 29, 1957 P. C. TREXLER PROTECTIVE GARMENT Filed Sept. 12. 1952 Tl I I j INVENTOR. PHIL/P C. TREXLE/P BY WW6 United States Patent 2,779,331 PROTECTIVE GARMENT Philip C. Trexler, Niles, Mich, "assignor, by mesne assignments, to the United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Navy Application September 12, 1952, Serial :No. 389,172 Claims. (Cl. 128 140 This invention relates to improvements in protective garments which shield the wearer from any liquid, gaseous, or solid agents located outside the garment.

'More specifically, the invention relates to a novel method andapparatus for sealing togethertwo sections of a garment which is to form a barrier for particles of microscopic size.

With the advent of a possibility of germ warfare and laboratory experiments requiring a germ-free environment, the need'for a protective garment whichcompletely seals the wearer and the surrounding medium from each other became apparent.

In the prior art, protective garments for underwater operations, suchas rescues, explorations, and fishing, have generally been made of rubber or elastic fabric wherein the two or more pieces of garment were joined together by means of a mechaincal seal or method of folding the two adjoining pieces of the garment together. Themechanical seal suffers from "the disadvantage that the seal itself is not as strong as the'rest of the suit, and breakage of the mechanical seal on the fabric about themechanical seal often occurs.

Another disadvantage of the mechanical seal and the so-ca1led folded seal is that such seals cannot be made sufficiently tight as to prevent passage of microscopic material, forexample, such as bacteria and the like.

'Stillanother disadvantage of thefmechanical and folded seal is 'thatsuch seals always {present 'a crevice which is difiicult to decontaminate. I

The primary object of the invention "is therefore {to provide a novel garment which avoids the above disadvantages by applying a seal which is both strong construction, and also capable of sealing out particles of microscopic size, as well as liquid andga seous media.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved seal for joining together'two separableportionsof a protective garment whichis comfortable to the wearer aswell as being a continuous protective'seal against'the passage of microscopic particles.

A further object of the invention is to provide a protective garment which is generally flexible to allow freedom of movement'by the wearer and having acontinuous germ-free seal between the normallyseparable portions thereof. 7

Another object of the invention is to provide anovel method for sealing together two ,portionsof a protective garmentin such a manner that the seal will be substantially'germ free.

A still further object ofthe invention "is to provide a novel protective garment which includes a seal which is both germ free and moisture proof connectingtwo separable portions of the garment and which seal is also constructed to accommodate -'a connection to an 'airhose. i

One fe'atureof the invention is "the provision "of atwopicce garmentcomprising a unitary jacket portion open only at the bottom with a helmet andgloves "integral therewith, and a pants portion. The ends of the two "ice 2 portions of the garment include respective portions of fusible material adapted to be overlapped and fused together to provide a substantially perfect seal between the jacket and pants portions of the suit. The jacket portion "slips down over the arms and the pants portion up along the legs.

A feature of the method aspect of this invention relates to a method of joining the upper and lower portions of a protective garment by applying the upper and lower parts of the suit to an individual and. then sealing "the upper and lower parts together by a sealing process which includes overlapping adjacent portions of the suit and then fusing together the overlapping portions by the "application ofheat.

Other features and objects of the invention together with the specific details of the construction thereof will be more specifically hereinafter disclosed inthe specification, claims, and drawing wherein:

Figure 1 is an exploded front view of the garment of the invention;

Figure 2 is a side view of the garment shown in Figure 1 when the two portions thereof are connected together; and

Figure 3 is a. cross-sectional view of the seal portions ofthe garment show in Figures 1 and 2.

One of the most difiicult problems in connection with two-piece protective garments such as those used by divers and technicians working in laboratories requiring a germ free barrier between the wearer and the external environment is to prevent the entrance of moisture, gaseous, or bacterial particles throughvthe joint between the jacket and pants portions of the garment. This problem has been solved by this invention by joining the jacket and pants portions by a novel seal which, in addition, provides suitable support for the connection of a hose through which the wearer may breathe and expel air.

Inprotective suits which have been used by underwater divers and the like, the expulsion of carbon dioxide and other respiration products of the wearer is accomplished by a suitable valve arrangement which allows the wearer to expel air directly into the medium surrounding the *suit. However, where a germ-free barrier is desired, it is apparent that the wearer should not expel germs into the air surrounding the wearer. This invention solves this problem by the use of a hose having both inlet and outlet conduits which connect to the garment along the waist portion of the garment at a rigid junction between the jacket and pants portions thereof.-

Referring nowparticularly to the drawing, the garment comprising the invention includes an upper flexible jacket portion 10 which isa'unitarystructure having continuous arm sections 11-11 and gloves i3-13, respectively connected thereto and a helmet '14 including a transparent window section 16 covering the faceportion of the wearer. The jacket portion 10 is continuous except for an opening at the waist which is adapted to allow the wearer to slip the jacket over his head. A lower generally fiex'ible pants portion His-provided having boots 1818 integral therewith, a pair of suspender straps 2.0-2.0 connected to thewaist portion thereof by any suitable means and adapted to fit on the shoulders of the wearer, and a r igid waist-,band portion '22 which together with the waist portion of the jacketportion 10 forms a seal which will form a germ-free suit. A conduit Zdcarrying an air hose joins with'the rigid waisteband 22 ofthe pants portion 12 at the rear :of the suit fin order to interfere as little as possible with the wearer.

The garrnent may "be made from any flexiblemat'eria'l that is impervious to the agents involved. Forexample, a vinyl-film is =suitabl'erforuseieither as a :germ-free or a water-tight garment. The window rportion 16 "(if he helmet 14 may be made of any suitable transparent material which is also impervious to the agents involved. The suit of this invention is flexible in order to allow the wearer to move about freely. The only portion of the suit which embodies a rigid material is the waist band 22.

The Waist band 22 comprises a metal band 30 covered on both sides with respective layers of asbestos heat insulations 32 and 34. The band 30 and the insulation portions 32 and 34 are enveloped by the waist-end portion of the pants 12 of the garment which is doubled back over the metal band 30 and cemented or heat fused to itself beneath the band section.

The rigid waist-band section 22 is a very convenient support structure for the conduit 24 which is lightly cemented or otherwise soldered to an opening in the metal band 30. This conduit contains an air inlet hose 40, an air outlet hose 42, and electrical wiring 33 to operate a microphone and head set to be used by the wearer.

Conduit 24 and its contents have a length suitable for disposed about the rigid waist band 22. The two porl tions are then fused together to form a continuous tight seal. The garment portions 10 and 12 are preferably made of a thermoplastic material, so that a heat seal may be effected with a resistant band heater, 2. hot gas The heat intorch, or other suitable heating means. sulation asbestos layers 32 and 34 of the waist band 22 protect the wearer from the heat applied to melt the thermoplastic material of which the suit is preferably made.

An alternative sealing method is the utilizing of a L suitable fluid solvent to initially soften the material at the Waist of the garment, so that the adjacent portions may fuse together. A suitable solvent for use with a vinyl film material is acetone.

The heat-sealing method is preferred, since the garment may be easily removed by applying heat to loosen the bond between the jacket and pants portions thereof.

The rigid waist band 22 allows the seal to be easily and effectively made and, in addition, serves as a convenient connecting base for the conduit 24.

Another alternative 'method of sealing is to join the two portions of the garment by means of a cement which may be applied by means of a spray, brush, roller, or other device. Any type of cement that will adhere to the garments and form a sufficiently tough film may be used. In case of an emergency where speed of operation is of primary importance, an adhesive tape may be used.

Many modifications may be made of the preferred embodiment of the above invention without deviating from the broader, generic aspects of the invention.

I claim:

1. In a hermetic protective garment for completely sealing the wearer from the surrounding medium, an enveloping jacket portion including a helmet and gloves, an enveloping pants portion, said portions being impervious to said medium and having open ends lapped together at a zone adapted to surround the waist section of the wearer, and a rigid band fixedly connected to and extending within and circumferentially coextensive with the inner one of said ends, said ends being formed of fusible material and being hermetically fused together at said zone in an endless seal circumscribing said band.

2. In a hermetic protective garment for completely sealing the wearer from the surrounding medium, an enveloping jacket portion including a helmet and gloves, an enveloping pants portion, said portions being impervious to said medium and having open ends lapped together at a zone adapted to surround the waist section of the wearer, a rigid band fixedly connected to and extending within and circumferentially coextensive with the inner one of said ends, said ends being formed of fusible material and being hermetically fused together at said zone in an endless seal circumscribing said band, and an air hose connected to said band and extending through. said band and the garment portion with which said band is connected and communicating with the ,interior of the garment.

3. In a hermetic protective garment for completely sealing the wearer from the surrounding medium, an enveloping jacket portion including a helmet and gloves, an enveloping pants portion, said portions having open ends lapped together at a zone adapted to surround the waist section of the wearer, a rigid band fixedly con nected to and extending within the inner one of said ends, said ends being formed of fusible material and being hermetically fused together at said zone in an endless seal circumscribing said band, and an air hose including air supply and exhaust lines communicating with the interior of said garment, said hose being connected to said band and extending through said rigid band and the garment portion with which said band is connected.

4. In a hermetic protective garment for completely sealing the wearer from the surrounding medium, an enveloping jacket portion including a helmet and gloves, an enveloping pants portion, said portions having open ends lapped together at a zone adapted to surround the Waist section of the wearer, a rigid band permanently secured to said pants portion, an air hose connected to said band and communicating with the inside of the garment, and a pair of straps connected to said pants portions and disposed within said jacket portion and an ranged to rest on the shoulders of the wearer, said ends being formed of fusible material and being hermetically fused together at said zone in an endless seal circum scribing said band.

5. In a hermetic protective garment for completely .ealing the wearer from the surrounding medium, an enveloping jacket portion including a helmet and gloves, an enveloping pants portion, said portions being impervious to said medium and having open ends lapped together at a zone adapted to surround the waist section of the wearer, and a rigid band fixedly connected to and extending within said end of said pants portion and arranged to circumscribe the wearer, said ends being formed of thermoplastic material and being hermetically heat-fused together at said zone in an endless seal circumscribing said band.

6. In a hermetic protective garment for completely sealing the wearer from the surrounding medium, an enveloping jacket portion including a helmet and gloves, a pants portion, said portions being impervious to said medium and having open ends lapped together at a zone adapted to surround the waist section of the wearer, a rigid band fixedly connected to and extending within the inner one of said ends and arranged to circumscribe the wearer, said ends being formed of thermoplastic material and being hermetically heat-fused together at said zone in an endless seal cireumscribing said band, and a layer of heat insulation surrounded by said ends to pro tect the wearer from the heat of fusion.

7. In a hermetic protective garment for completely sealing the wearer from the surrounding medium, an enveloping jacket portion including a helmet and gloves, an enveloping pants portion. said portions having open ends telescoped together at a zone adapted to surround the waist section of the wearer, a rigid band fixedly connected toand extending within said end of said pants portion, said ends being formed of thermoplastic material and being hermetically heat-fused together at said zone in an endless seal circumscribing said band, and a layer of heat insulation between said band and said pants portion to protect the wearer from the heat of fusion.

8. In a hermetic protective garment for completely sealing the wearer from the surrounding medium, an enveloping jacket portion including a helmet and gloves, an enveloping pants portion, said portions having open ends lapped together at a zone adapted to surround the waist section of the wearer, a rigid band fixedly connected to and extending within the inner one of said ends, said ends being formed of fusible material and being hermetically fused together at said zone in an endless seal circumscribiug said band, and a pair of straps connected to said pants portion and disposed within said jacket portion and arranged to rest on the shoulders of the wearer.

9. In a protective garment for hermetically sealing the wearer from gaseous, liquid, and bacterial media outside the garment, a unitary flexible plastic jacket portion ineluding a helmet and gloves for completely enveloping the upper part of the wearers body and having an endless waist end so that it can be applied only by slipping it down over the wearers head, and a unitary flexible plastic pants portion including shoes for completely enveloping the lower part of the wearers body and having an endless waist end so that it can be applied only by slipping it up along the wearers legs and hips, said portions being impervious to said media, said waist ends being formed of fusible material and mutually lapped and hermetically fused together continuously throughout the adjacent peripheries of said ends to seal the juncture of said portions.

10. In a hermetic protective garment, unitary flexible thermoplastic jacket and pants portions impervious to microscopic particles and formed to completely envelope and seal the upper and lower parts, respectively, of the wearer, said portions being hermetically heat-fused together in an endless circumferential seal arranged to circumscribe the wearer.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,204,921 Wills Nov. 14, 1916 1,931,562 Thompson Oct. 24, 1933 2,397,751 Rand Apr. 2, 1946 2,442,749 Callahan et al. June 8, 1948 2,516,419 Reyniers July 25, 1950 2,540,547 Rodert Feb. 6, 1951 2,570,019 Wolk Oct. 2, .1951 2,615,165 Steedman Oct. 28, 1952 2,655,663 Hoagland Oct. 20, 1953 OTHER REFERENCES An Electronic Sewing Machine, Cyril N. Hoyler, reprinted from August 1943 issue of Electronics, page 2. (Copy available in Division 24.) 

